February 13, 2015 03:04 PM UTC

Colorado Republican "Brain Child" Architect Pleads Guilty

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• by: Colorado Pols

UPDATE: A local grassroots conservative blog adds some interesting–alleged, we must note–details on the relationship between Colorado GOP chairman Ryan Call and Tyler Harber of Harden Global, who pled guilty this week to federal coordination and false statement charges:

Colorado GOP Chairman Ryan Call’s handpicked board member for the Colorado Republican Party Independent Expenditure Committee (IEC) has plead guilty in a federal prosecution case to illegally coordinating a Super PAC he created with the campaign of Congressional candidate Chris Perkins, for whom he served as a campaign manager…

This admission of guilt seriously calls into question Ryan Call’s creation of the Colorado Republican IEC, which he has always denied coordinates with individual candidates and campaigns. Like the Super PACs on a federal level, independent expenditure committees under Colorado law are exempt from Colorado’s campaign finance restrictions so long as they do not coordinate their activities with specific candidates. At this time, there has already been one campaign finance complaint filed against the Republican IEC by campaign finance watchdog organization, Campaign Integrity Watchdog. That matter is still pending.

The board of directors of the Colorado Republican IEC, including Harber, was appointed by Colorado GOP Chairman Ryan Call. Harber also served as the registered agent for the Colorado Republican IEC. The Colorado Republican IEC has paid tens of thousands of dollars to Harden Global, Harber’s Washington D.C. based consulting company since its inception in 2013. Yes—Harber served on the board of directors that authorized to spend tens of thousands of dollars to his own company. Apparently Chairman Call saw nothing wrong with that.

So where and how did Harden Global spend the tens of thousands of dollars that the Republican IEC paid it? No one knows, but one could reasonably assume much of it went back into the pockets of Tyler Harber…

Could things be about to get messier than expected for Call, just as the endorsements are starting to lock down? Stay tuned.

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A press release from the Department of Justice yesterday announces a guilty plea entered by one Tyler Eugene Harber, a D.C.-based Republican political consultant:

A campaign finance manager and political consultant pleaded guilty today in the Eastern District of Virginia for coordinating $325,000 in federal election campaign contributions by a political action committee (PAC) to a Congressional campaign committee.  This is the first criminal prosecution in the United States based upon the coordination of campaign contributions between political committees…

“Campaign finance laws exist to guard against illegal activity such as coordinated campaign contributions,” U.S. Attorney Boente said.  “The citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia can rely this office enforce federal campaign finance law.”

 “Today, Mr. Harber took responsibility for violating federal election campaign laws by illegally coordinating payments between a super pac and a candidate’s campaign committee,” said Assistant Director in Charge McCabe.  “The FBI will continue to investigate allegations of campaign finance abuse which are in place to ensure openness and fairness in our elections so the people’s interests are protected.”

Tyler Eugene Harber, 34, of Alexandria, Virginia, pleaded guilty to one count of coordinated federal election contributions and one count of making false statements to the FBI before U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady of the Eastern District of Virginia.  A sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 5, 2015.

Tyler Eugene Harber is/was (we're not sure what the status is today) a partner in the political consulting firm Harden Global, whose website has suddenly gone down for maintenance in the wake of Harber's guilty plea. Locals will remember that Harden Global is the contractor who developed the website for the Colorado Republican Party Independent Expenditure Committee last summer. Originally billed as a "well-financed, multiyear effort by Republicans in Colorado," the IE committee's centerpiece "research site" fell into obscurity after being lampooned for using stock photos from Utah and Arizona–a lethal faux pas in Colorado politics.

While we haven't heard allegations of impropriety related to the Colorado Republican IR committee's activities last year, as Tom Tancredo can tell you, Colorado is no stranger to Byzantine political dealings involving shady Washington GOP-allied political types. Also, we do note that the website Harden Global built for the Colorado GOP was originally represented as chairman Ryan Call's "brain child."

So, you know, hopefully Call gets the password from Mr. Harber before sentencing.